CHAPTER XV
DISAPPEARANCE OF LITTLE NELL
As was natural Dave and Henry journeyed side by side. They moved directly behind Mrs. Morris and little Nell, who brought up in the rear of the litter on which Joseph Morris rested, and the horses under the control of Rodney. Dave's father was not with the party, nor was trusty Sam Barringford, both having joined the party of rangers who formed the advance guard.
Following the instructions given them the pioneers and their families moved through the great forest as silently as possible, only the occasional groan of a wounded one, or the cry of some little child breaking the stillness. The route was past the rocks bordering one of the water-courses previously mentioned and then along what in those days was called the Old Buffalo Trail,—a well-beaten path along which in years gone by countless buffaloes had passed in their migrations to the east and return. The buffaloes were now fast disappearing from this territory, as are to-day the deer, wolves, and other wild animals which were likewise numerous.
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